Born in South Wales, Ganz studied painting, sculpture and stained glass at the Swansea College of Art. Having worked as a tutor until 1973 she then took up painting full time. With a growing interest in the surrounding landscape of South Wales she began concentrating on its industries which included coal mining. Having recorded fourteen different collieries, in 1985 she took a house and studio at Six Bells, Abertillery. For nearly a year she based herself at Six Bells Colliery shadowing the miners both above ground and at the coalface. In the evening she would visit the snooker halls and local chapel to make studies of the men at leisure and with their families. This painting dates from a commission that Ganz received from British Coal Opencast in 1990 to record three of its sites in South Wales.